It is important for children to learn and acquire various basic skills during early education since these basic skills are relied upon to further advance the child's intellectual capabilities. For example, it is extremely important that children acquire basic math skills. Specifically, basic mathematical skills serve multiple purposes, including preparation for work, for citizenship, for general education, and for higher education.
Traditionally, math skills such as addition, subtraction, and multiplication have been taught through the use of flash cards. While the use of flash cards has created some successes, some children simply do not learn well from flash cards because flash cards rely on memorization rather than an understanding of underlying concepts. Therefore, it is desirable to have a fun and entertaining game, which is enjoyable for the players, but also helps children learn and visualize the math concepts so important for success in life.
There are several educational card games taught in the prior art, but none teach the method used in the present invention.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,952 shows a game apparatus having at least one playing board having an array of uniquely identifiable positions thereon with such positions having numerical values that are associated therewith each position being identified by a playing card suit symbol and a numeral.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,379,700 teaches a multiplication-division game containing chips representing multiplication products and playing cards representing multiplier-multiplicand combinations which equal the products of said chips.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,428,582 teaches an apparatus for the playing of a variety of educational games by players of all ages and skills. Cards or tiles are provided with numbers on one side and letters on the other.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,658 teaches a matching game and game board for teaching math fundamentals such as multiplication, addition, subtraction, etc. to children. Cards having math problems thereon are distributed about the game board, and during the game individual players, via tokens, advance over the cards and around the game board.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,381 teaches a method of playing a game where there is a first set of dice, each of which has the numerical values of one through six thereon, and a second set of dice each of which has plus, minus, division and multiplication thereon. The two sets of dice are discharged onto a playing surface in a random pattern, and then the individual dice members of the first and second set are placed in an alternating pattern so that when the mathematical operations are performed as indicated in the overturning mating arrangement of the two sets of die, a desired maximum value is obtained.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,278 teaches an educational game for teaching the fundamentals of dimensional analysis, including a chip imprinted with an equal sign, and at least one set of cards. Each set of cards includes at least three cards, each card having first and second faces, each one imprinted with a line bisecting the face to form top and bottom generally rectangular halves. On each card a first symbol is imprinted on the top half of the first face and the same symbol is imprinted on the bottom half of the second face, while a different symbol is imprinted on the bottom half of the first face and that symbol is also a printed on the top half of the second face.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,390 teaches a mathematical board game for a plurality of players having a rectangular game board with a plurality of cards stations or chambers arranged in a matrix of horizontal and vertical rows. The card chambers include a start card chamber in each corner of the board and a plurality of problem card chambers in a perimeter of the board between the start card chambers. A plurality of answer card chambers on the board is surrounded by the start card chambers and the problem card chambers.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,065,970 shows a method of playing a game which includes (i) the game board which is divided into a plurality of sections, such that each of the section defines a playing location, (ii) a number disposed on each of the playing card locations, (iii) a plurality of cards, and (iv) a number disposed on each of the cards. The game includes the steps of (a) providing a game board with a multiplicity of the cards, (b) the game play or determining if the number indicated on any one of the cards is a first mathematical multiple of the number indicated on any one of the playing card locations, (c) removing from the multiplicity of the cards a first card that has the number indicated thereon, which is the first mathematical multiple of the card indicated on one of the playing locations, and (d) positioning the first card on one of the playing locations such that the number indicated on the first card is the first mathematical multiple of the number indicated on the playing location on which the first card is positioned.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,341,779 teaches a mathematical card and dice game comprising a deck of cards, a set of three dice, and a timing device, the deck of cards divided into four suits and 15 cards each, 10 of which are numbered one through 10, the remaining five nonnumeric cards having letters which can take on any value defined by the players prior to the game. A predetermined number of cards are dealt to players who use the value of the three dice rolled, common mathematical operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and their knowledge of math to make mathematical relationships that equate to the value of the cards in their hands with predetermined amount of time stretched by a timing device. A successful match occurs when the card value equals the numeric result of a mathematical operation involving all three dice. Players play successful matching cards face down till the end of the round, when the time limit is up, whereon they turn the cards over and must be able to successfully explain the relationship the card value has to the dice values.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,609,712 relates to a math manipulative educational learning game in which a plurality of rods are provided for use in various manipulative games designed to teach rudimentary arithmetic skills. In the preferred embodiment, the rods are of various lengths and\or volumes, with the shortest length comprising a unit length, and other rods being formed as integral multiples of the unit length. Various games are disclosed in which a child is encouraged to manipulate the rods in various ways and in order to learn various arithmetic lessons.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,402 teaches a method of playing a mathematical game to calculate a target value which includes generating a target value randomly, generating a plurality of calculating numbers to be used to calculate the target value, and calculating, by a first player, an initial solution that is equal to the target value, by combining the calculating numbers with any combination of a plurality of mathematical operations in any order.
U.S. publication number US 2004/0232618 discloses decks of addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and number recognition playing cards covering all the numbers generally employed in teaching children basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and number recognition skills and are suitable for use in playing a variety of well-known card games such as War, Concentration, Old Maid, Go Fish, Rummy, Gin Rummy, 21, and Split.
None of the prior art described above, teaches the present invention.